My Sunday Prayer | Praying for Afghanistan

The myriad of heartbreaking images flowing from Afghanistan stir our collective souls to cry out to God in prayer. On the cusp of commemorating the shocking terror attack of September 11, 2001, twenty years ago, many of us are left wondering if this is truly how we will leave the people of Afghanistan.

As I type, I am keenly aware of what sounds like a repeating reel of disaster striking places like Lebanon and Haiti. Hurricane Henri is poised to strike the New England coast. Fires are burning in California. Violence is decimating Chicago as violent crime is rising in many major American cities. We still haven’t figured out what to do to prevent mass shootings by psychotic, disillusioned lone wolves. And then there is the pandemic and our continued global entanglement with COVID-19.

¹³ Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy? You should sing praises. ¹⁴ Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵ Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven.

¹⁶ Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. ¹⁷ Elijah was as human as we are, and yet when he prayed earnestly that no rain would fall, none fell for three and a half years! ¹⁸ Then, when he prayed again, the sky sent down rain and the earth began to yield its crops.

James 5:13-18 (NLT)

Yes, indeed. There is lots to pray for collectively, as I am sure there is no shortage to pray for individually. So today, let’s pray. Let us humble ourselves and turn to God because the solutions to all of these things are far beyond our own power. We need help. Supernatural help. We need the Holy Spirit to guide us, direct us, and lead us. We need the God of all comfort to shield us and give us refuge from the surrounding madness.

In light of all the bad news, it would be easy to give up. But, don’t be deceived. Look for the good news in your life. It’s there. No. The sky isn’t falling and the bottom hasn’t dropped out, even though it may seem like it. God is still on His throne. Goodness still exists. Love still wins.

Be encouraged. Do not be dismayed. Continue to fight injustice. Continue to love one another. Continue to seek God. Keep praying.

Prayer is a conversation that you and I get to have with God, whenever and as often as we want or like. He hears our cries. He sees our tears. He embraces us in ways only He can and comforts us with a love unimaginable and abounding in grace and mercy.

Prayer:

Father God, I pray for the people of Afghanistan and the nation that we see crumbling before our eyes. Have mercy on them and defeat their enemies who seek to steal, kill and destroy this ancient nation. Let your truth reign. Let your justice deliver the people of Afghanistan from those who seek to do the harm. We pray for the women and children in harm’s way. We pray you instill the men there with the courage and wherewithal to do what is right and to stand up against the merchants of terror. We love You, Lord. Thank You for saving us. Forgive us, Lord, for our shortcomings and our transgressions. Give us this day our daily bread, dear God. May Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.

Humbly,

The Devotional Guy™